Valentine's Day: The Accident
by Firestar1
Summary: Ryo's on his way home and something terrible happens. Yaoi--SagexRyo, RyoxSage
1. Valentine's Day: The Accident

Valentine's Day: The Accident  
Firestar  
  
Disclaimer: The Ronin Warriors are not mine, but this story is.  
  
A/N: Hey everyone! I'm starting a new series, so I hope you all enjoy this. Just so everbody knows,  
this is yaoi, but it won't get too explicit. And, because of a request by Wildifire Friendship, this is   
going to be a SagexRyo pairing.   
  
-----------------  
  
February 14  
  
7:00 pm  
  
Ryo strode happily to his car, a small box clutched in his right hand. That tiny box had cost him   
a month's salary at the veterinary clinic. Climbing into the vehicle, he nearly pranced with impatience.  
He wanted to get home in time to get ready for the night out the rest of the guys had planned.  
  
-----------------  
  
Sage was pacing by the window. "Come on, Ryo, hurry up and get home," he said to the thin air.  
Rowen cast him an amused look. "Geez, Sage, Ryo's only been gone for a half-hour. Give the poor   
guy a break." Sage looked at him sheepishly, "Yeah, well, I just can't wait for tonight."  
  
Kento turned his head away and mumbled under his breath. "I'll bet you can't." Sage's face turned an   
interesting shade of red.  
  
-----------------  
  
The officer and his partner had been nearing the end of their shift when the red sportscar went   
speeding by them, swerving drunkenly across the road. Sighing disappointedly, the two officers  
turned around and began their pursuit. When their quarry didn't respond to their sirens, they  
called ahead for backup, glad that the roads were usually pretty empty at this time of day.  
  
----------------  
  
Ryo stayed just inside the speed limit, knowing the police patrolled this stretch of road heavily,  
but he still managed to keep the car doing a respectable 60 mph. He just couldn't wait to get home.  
Besides, Sage was waiting.  
  
The thought of the blond swordsman brought a smile to Ryo's lips, and he slipped into a daydream,  
remembering some of their more intimate moments.  
  
He was snapped back to reality by the sound of screeching tires as a car barreled around a blind   
curve into his lane, followed closely by a patrol car. Ryo twisted the wheel frantically, trying  
to maneuver out of the way. The last thing he saw was a flash of red and then there was a tremendous  
sound of twisting metal. Darkness reached out to claim him, sucking him down.  
  
---------------  
  
Sage glanced up suddenly from his pacing and his kanji flashed brightly on his forehead, echoing  
the light glowing from the foreheads of his friends. He felt a wrenching inside of him, followed  
by incredible pain. Sage clutched his head in agony and screamed in horrified grief. "Ryyooo!"  
  
---------------  
  
The police car took the sharp curve at a dangerous 80 mph, following closely on the suspect's tail.  
The officers inside had just enough time to see the suspect's car collide head first with an oncoming vehicle,   
sending it careening into their lane before they, too, crashed into the driver's side of the already   
mangled car.  
  
---------------  
  
2 hours later  
  
The Ronin Warriors stood anxiously in the waitng room of the hospital, fearing the worst for their leader.  
They'd been told earlier that Ryo had been hit twice at dangerously high speeds and then been smashed  
into the guard rail lining the curve. It was a miracle their friend had even survived the first impact,  
let alone the other two, but the doctors had very little hope that he would survive the night.   
  
When Sage heard the desperate news, the normally collected warrior had collapsed into anguished tears.  
Rowen and the others gathered around him, able to offer him only scant comfort.   
  
---------------  
  
11:00 pm  
  
Sage sat next to Ryo's hospital bed, clutching a frail hand in his. Tears ran silently down his face as  
he stared helplessly at the bed's deathly pale occupant. A cast encased Ryo's right arm from the elbow down  
and another clung to Ryo's leg. Terrible purple bruises covered most of the injured warrior's exposed  
flesh and a multitude of cuts were scattered across his body. Worst of all, however, was the bandage  
stained with red wrapped around Ryo's head.  
  
The doctors said that Ryo had been lucky. Sage smiled bitterly at the thought. He knew Ryo would think of   
himself as anything but.   
  
---A/N---------  
  
So? What'd you guys all think? I know this isn't very long, but I plan to get the next part out soon.  
I'm not going to guarantee a date, though. Anyway, could you all take the time to review? Pretty please?  



	2. Valentine's Day: The Bad News

  
-------------  
  
Sage looked sadly from the prone form in front of him to the tiny object in his hand. A doctor   
had handed him a tiny box when he had come into see Ryo. They said it had fallen from Ryo's coat   
pocket when he was brought into the emergency room.  
  
Sage's hands started to shake when he saw what was inside. It was a pair of rings, beautifully  
engraved with both his and Ryo's kanji. Tears started in his eyes then, threatening to drown him  
with their saltiness. "Ryo, they're beautiful," he whispered, wishing his love was awake so that  
he could slip one of the rings onto his finger.  
But Ryo wasn't awake. Sage turned to look once more at his love. The room's sterile whiteness  
only emphasized his love's pale skin and he looked so fragile hooked up to the machines looming by his  
bed.  
  
The blond warrior shut the box with a snap. He wouldn't open it again until Ryo could share the moment  
with him.  
  
---------------  
  
Blackness swirled around him, sucking him into its depths. He tried to climb out, to open his eyes,  
but even when he thought he had succeeded, the blackness refused to go away.  
  
---------------  
  
"Ryo? Ryo, can you hear me?" Sage asked hopefully.  
  
The black-haired boy stirred and let out a faint groan. "S-Sage."  
  
"How are you feeling Ryo?" he asked with concern.  
  
Ryo's beautiful blue eyes opened slowly and he ignored Sage's query. "Where am I?"  
  
"You're in the hospital. You've been out for five days."  
  
Ryo closed his eyes slowly and then opened them once more. Speaking in an eerily calm voice he   
asked the question Sage had been dreading most. "Why is it so dark in here?"  
  
Sage's already white skin paled further, but Ryo didn't see it. "Do you remember the accident, Ryo?"  
he asked, trying to think of a way to break the news to Ryo gently.   
  
"Kinda. It-it's all mixed up, though. Like a big blur. The car came out of nowhere. I  
didn't have time to get out of the way." Ryo's voice quavered a bit with uncertainty and remembered fear.  
  
"But Sage, what does that have to do with it being so dark?"  
  
Before Sage could answer, a doctor came walking into the room. Glancing up from his clipboard, he  
smile cheerily. "Hello Mr. Sanada, it's so nice to see you're finally awake.  
  
-------------  
  
Ryo stared vacantly into space, his crystal blue eyes rimmed by redness.   
All his attention was turned inwards as he tried to understand how this could have  
happened and what he was going to do now.  
  
The doctor had given him the news almost cheerfully, stressing how lucky he was  
to be alive. A slow, burning sensation had been building since then. A feeling   
of despair. He was useless now. He couldn't fight, and if he were to try, he knew  
he would only prove himself to be a liablity.  
  
It would have been better if he had died. Then the Wildfire armor would have  
passed to someone who could actually use it.  
  
He didn't know how he could live like this. He'd gone through it once before,  
but only briefly, and Sage had healed him. Ever since then, he'd harbored a fear  
of the dark, although he hid it very carefully.  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Valentine's Day: Useless

Valentine's Day: Part 3  
Firestar  
  
Disclaimer: They're not mine.  
  
A/N: Hey, I'm sorry it took sooooo long to get this next part out. I had a combination of writer's block  
and a lack of free time. I hope you'll all forgive me and I'll try to get the next part out sooner. There  
really isn't any action in this part, I'm really just setting the stage for the rest of the story. Anyways,  
enjoy! and thanks for being so patient.  
  
Kento sighed wearily into hands as he sat on the couch. It had been  
almost a month since the Accident and Ryo had been out of the hospital for two weeks.  
And still he wasn't recovered. In fact, he was probably worse off than he'd been when   
he'd first woken up.  
The warrior of Hardrock was ready to give up. He just couldn't think of any way  
to help his friend. He and the other Ronins watched as a little bit more of their leader died  
with every battle they fought, with every battle he could not join. Rowen lead now, in his stead.  
They weren't big battles, little more than skirmishes, actually, but it really didn't make a   
difference.  
And while Ryo was slipping away from them, Sage was following in his wake. Both  
had grown thin and pale since the Accident. The Ronin of Halo, more than any of them, was  
hurting...and they could do nothing. Nothing to convince him that it wasn't his fault that Ryo  
was hurt. That it wasn't his fault Ryo had been so anxious to get home. That, finally and most  
importantly, it wasn't his fault that he couldn't heal the man he loved.  
Life had changed so much since the Accident. Now, instead of hope and joy  
and happiness and the belief that one day, when all the battles were over, they could settle  
down in peace...now life had no hope at all, and Kento knew instinctively that when hope  
was lost, everything else went with it, leaving behind what they had now. And what they  
had now was despair.  
Worst of all, the intensity of their battles was increasing. Something was once  
again organizing the scattered remnants of the Dynasty. It wasn't Talpa. He had been   
destroyed for good last time, and with his destruction the Dynasty had crumbled. Only  
a few demons had remained to throw themselves at the Mortal World and their attacks had  
begun to grow infrequent.  
Now, however, the frequency and ferocity of the battles had increased, as if something  
knew about Ryo's Accident, and was taking advantage of it.  
  
*********************  
  
Rowen lay awake in his bed, tossing restlessly. The whole situation was tearing him apart.  
He didn't understand how Ryo had been able to lead them so well for so long. Leadership was something  
the warrior of Strata had never wanted, let alone knew how to cope with. He knew strategy, he knew how  
to hold his own one on one, he could even direct a battle with a fair amount of success. But for the life of   
him, he could NOT lead. As a matter of fact, the Ronin Warriors were falling apart. Ryo and Sage were   
merely pale shadows of themselves, Cye had become silent and withdrawn, and even Kento had lost his   
appetite.   
The blue-haired man sat up slowly, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. He could see only  
one way to make everything turn out all right.   
  
********************  
  
Cye sat silently on the porch of the house they all shared. Rowen had awakened him earlier, and  
asked him to meet him outside after he got Kento. Now all three sat together, contemplating their situation.  
Somehow, someway, they had to get Ryo to snap out of his depression. It was the only way they could  
keep on fighting. And to do that, they had to convince him that he wasn't worthless.  
Finally, Torrent broke the silence. "We should do it tomorrow. We can't let this go on any longer."  
The others nodded in agreement. Tomorrow.  
  
********************  
  
Ryo tossed and turned in his sleep. His body had been long since healed by his lover, leaving only  
his eyes damaged. But that was more than enough. His blindness haunted him, taunting him with his   
helplessness. He'd stood by in safety while his friends fought, unable to help them.   
The crash replayed itself over and over in his dreams, and always he was speeding forward. He   
knew what was going to happen but he couldn't stop. The car came barrelling around the curve, metal  
shrieked as it twisted.... and he woke up, sweat coating his body and tears flowing from his sightless eyes.  
The once great Ronin of Wildfire sat up in bed, shoulders shaking as he desperately tried to   
hold back his sobs. He knew he was being selfish, he saw how drawn Sage had become, but he couldn't  
just move on.   
  
**********************  
Morning came slowly for the three conspirators. Now that they had a plan, they were eager to get  
on with it. If there was even the chance of this working, they wanted to do it soon, before another battle   
began.   
As soon as they saw the sun creeping over the horizon, they slipped out of bed and headed  
to where Sage and Ryo slept. They crept into the room slowly, careful not to awaken the two sleeping men.  
One hesitated as he saw the trails tears had left during the night on one pale face, but then he continued   
resolutely onward. He gathered the motionless form to him, taking it carefully in his arms and then heading   
to the door. The others followed quietly, careful to leave the other man undisturbed. They crept softly  
down the stairs, the two not burdened carrying several long, slender shapes wrapped in cloth.  
They continued onwards out the door and did not stop until they were several miles away from the  
house. By now the sun had risen fully and the once motionless figure had begun to stir. Slowly, he turned  
his head, his eyes blinking sightlessly. Then suddenly he sat up as he realized he was no longer in his bed  
and no longer by his lover's side. He groped about frantically, trying to find something familiar to latch onto.  
And then he was still again as he heard footsteps nearby. His sapphire eyes searched fruitlessly  
for the source. Suddenly he felt strong hands about his shoulders, lifting him roughly to his feet. Still he   
tried desperately to figure out what was going on when a familiar voice sent a chill down his spine.  
It brought back terrifying memories of a time of darkness, much like the darkness he had now.  
"It is good you are finally awake Wildfire, now we can begin your training. You have been allowed to wallow  
in your self-pity for far too long. My compatriots and I are here to make sure that you do not remain so useless."  
  
  



	4. Valentine's Day: The Return

Valentine's Day: The Return  
Firestar  
  
Disclaimer: In case people haven't figured this out already, the Ronin Warriors aren't mine. I just take a perverse  
pleasure in making them suffer a little bit.  
  
A/N: The first thing I want to do is APOLOGIZE! I never planned on taking so long between chapter when I   
started this fic and I am sooooo sorry. Unfortuneately, I can't promise its going to get better. While my   
softball season has finally ended and I now have a life again, finals are coming up and I'll be starting my  
summer job in a week or two. But please have patience, because no matter how long it takes, I WILL finish  
this fic.  
  
***************************  
  
Kauyra was sitting in her private garden meditating when the staff leaning against the wall began   
to chime softly and a faint glow started to emanate from its slender length. The young woman glanced up  
in startlement, it had been quite some time since the staff had been active. Frowning faintly, she climbed  
to her feet and walked over to it, taking it in her hands and allowing it to pull her into a trance.  
After a few moments she heard a voice speaking quietly, calling out to her through the staff's magic.  
Kauyra allowed her eyes to fly open in suprise, but quickly closed them in concentration. It was one of the  
Ronins using his armor to contact her. He sounded desperate, and she knew the situation had to be grave  
indeed for one of the Ronins to actually initiate contact with the Nether Realm. They'd never quite gotten over  
their uneasiness with their former enemies.  
The communication lasted for several long moments and Kauyra's face grew graver and graver.  
Finally, as the glow faded, Kauyra opened her eyes once more. A hint of wetness caught the bright sunlight,  
and it appeared to trickled down her cheek.   
"We owe you Ryo. We'll do all we can," came the whispered vow and suddenly Kauyra was in  
motion, dashing out of the garden and into the long corridor of the castle. She wasn't about to attempt this  
alone.  
  
**************************  
  
Sage woke slowly, reluctant to face the new day. He lay in the bed for a long time, trying to shut  
out the world and its sorrows. Eventually, however, he noticed the lack of warmth by his side. Nowadays,  
Ryo NEVER got out of bed before the blonde swordsman. With that thought firmly in mind, Sage shot upright,  
flinging off the light blanket and scrambling for some clothes. Something was definitely not right.  
After managaing to locate a pair of pants, Sage was heading down the stairs, calling for his missing  
lover. Searching more and more frantically, he finally entered the kitchen and located a piece of paper sitting  
on the table. A brief note was scrawled on it in Rowen's hand. Sage picked up the paper in disbelief, and his  
hand, seemingly of its own will, clenched tightly around it. The Ronin of Halo lifted his head slowly and stared  
out the window towards the newly risen sun and the direction in which his friends had gone. A fury was   
building behind his violet eyes. It gained in intensity, burning its way through him. They had no right to make  
decisions like this without him. They had no right to take his love away from his side. And they had no RIGHT  
to spirit Ryo away and entrust him to the brutal hands of former warlords.  
  
**************************  
  
Rowen, Kento, and Cye walked home slowly, reluctant to face what they knew waited for them  
back at the house. An angry Sage was not something to be messed with.  
Cye kicked at a tuff of grass anxiously. "Guys, are you sure we did the right thing? Should we  
have left Ryo alone with them?"  
Rowen glanced up from the ground he had been so steadfastly staring at. "We didn't really have   
a choice, Cye. We had to find some way to help Ryo, and the only way I could think of to do that was to get  
him fighting again. He feels so useless right now, and I'm hoping the warlords can change that."  
Cye nodded his head thoughtfully and then looked over at Kento. "What do you think?" Kento  
was silent for a moment and then looked both of his friends gravely. "I think Ryo's the least of our problems.  
We've still got Sage to face."  
  
**************************  
  
Sweat dripped from his hair, running along his cheeks and into his sightless eyes. Scrapes and bruises  
covered his knees and the palms of his hands. From the first bewildering moment of his awakening, he'd been  
forced to stumble through the once familiar and basic excersises that used to be such an important part of  
his life. There'd been no breaks, no concessions for his blindness. Indeed, the warlords treated him as if  
nothing had happened at all and were training him like any other warrior. Hence the scrapes and bruises.  
It seemed as if every stone and tree root deliberately reached up from the ground and latched onto his feet.  
He did have a few things to be grateful for, however. Such as the fact that Sage had completely  
healed his other injuries several weeks ago and he'd had time to regain a bit of strength. And the warlords  
DID take time out to teach him how to work a move differently so that it was possible for him to practice   
without falling flat on his face all the time.  
So, even though this seemed like pure torture, he felt alive for the first time in weeks. As a matter of fact,  
he- THWACK!  
Ryo was jolted out of his ill-placed reverie by the impact of a practice blade to his unprotected side.  
"Concentrate, Wildfire. You, more than anybody, should know not to let your mind wander on the battlefield."  
"Yeah, I know, but how am I supposed to block your attacks, Dais? It's not like I can see them   
coming." Sehkment snorted contemptously. "Are you telling me, Wildfire, that the entire time you were fighting  
Talpa, you relied ONLY on your sight? How pathetic. A true warrior should have mastered ALL of his senses  
to gain every trace of an advantage."  
Ryo straightened his sagging shoulders, stung by the insult. "I managed well enough against YOU  
guys, didn't I?"  
Even without out his eyes, Ryo could sense the glare burning a hole through his head. "Try it again.  
And this time I will not pull my blow."  
  
Several exhausting hours later Ryo lay flat on his back, trying not to jostle his exceedingly sore  
muscles. But even as he ached in every bone in his body, he was mentally laying out the task of destroying  
the last remnants of the Dynasty and of getting the Ronin Warriors back into fighting form. Ryo Sanada,  
bearer of the Wildfire and Inferno armors and the Ronin of Virtue, was back. Now all he had to do was learn  
how to fight.  
  
  
  
  
  



	5. Valentine's Day: The End

Valentine's Day: THE END  
Firestar  
  
A/N: Any inconsistencies probably result from the incredibly long time its been since  
I've added to this fic. I also don't claim to know anything about being blind and I really  
don't mean to offend anybody. This is meant purely as entertainment, but at the same  
time I truly believe that anything is possible as long as you refuse to give up. Physical  
disabilities are no exception.  
  
Disclaimer: The Ronin Warriors are not mine and I'm not making any money.  
  
***********************************************  
  
  
  
Sage sat silently in the living room, still as a statue. After hours of fruitless raging, his  
anger settled, distilling itself into an iron core of white hot rage. No compassion or reason  
tainted it. No thought other than making THEM pay for what they'd done was allowed to  
pollute the purity of his emotion.  
  
Oh yes, they would be very sorry indeed.  
  
And so Sage waited for them to return as they would inevitably would, full of contrition  
and apology, but infuriatingly certain that they were right. That they had had the RIGHT to   
take off with his lover and place him, helpless as he was, directly into the hands of the men  
who had tried to kill him, kill them all, just a year before.  
  
He waited in a darkened living room, barely noticible in a room gone dim and filled with  
shadows as the day passed. He waited...  
  
******************************  
  
Kento paused as he reached the porch of the mansion, a shivery feeling settled itself like  
a leaden weight in the pit of his stomach. Quite often Kento was regarded as thick-headed,  
insensitive to what went on around him. But, contrary to popular opinion, his stocky build and  
pleasant face hid within them a very intelligent young man. A warrior could not have survived  
with less. And now his keen senses warned him of a danger unlike he'd ever faced before.  
  
A pissed off Sage was not to be taken lightly.  
  
******************************  
  
Cye and Rowen exchanged a wordless look as their friend paused at the threshold. They were  
no more eager to go on than he, and they used their last moments of safety to ready themselves  
for whatever lay ahead.  
  
Sage rarely lost control. He was a calm, collected kind of guy who, although far from being  
unfeeling, liked to take the time to think things through. But when he did lose that precious  
control, when he allowed something to get through his impressive shields, then hell breaking  
loose was the least of their worries.  
  
Finally, they could stand to wait no more. After exchanging another one of those silent communications,  
they walked forward to face their friend.  
  
*******************************  
  
Ryo groaned as he was shaken roughly awake by a hard hand on his shoulder, but he willingly  
climbed off of his pallet. The warlords insisted he train "like a real warrior", which meant that  
soft beds were out of the game plan.  
  
But still, he was looking forward to the day's work-out. It meant he was yet another step closer  
to regaining his lost fighting ability. It was amazing what he could sense once he stopped mourning  
the loss of his sight.  
  
The tiniest sounds could be used to pinpoint the enemies' location and movement, smells could inform  
him of the nature of the threat, even touch could be used to anticipate an attack if he paid careful  
attention to the vibrations beneath his feet and the feel of the air against his skin. And he had the   
benefit of his armor, which sharpened all those senses and gave him others as well.  
  
It was only recently that he realized just how much he had come so close to losing because of his  
self-pity. He'd resisted the warlords help at first, insisting that he was useless, that it was impossible  
for him to fight again. Their contempt had forced him to try. His success had spurred him to continue.  
And now he realized just how lucky he really was.  
  
********************************  
  
Rowen, Cye and Kento sat stiffly in the kitchen, each of them trying to hold multiple icepacks to  
their battered bodies. Among them they sported bloody lips and noses, blackened eyes, gashes that  
dripped blood everywhere, and even a few of what they thought to be cracked ribs.  
  
Sage had been merciless, stopping himself just barely at the line of true injury. And they had the feeling  
he wasn't through with them, as if he was just waiting for them to heal enough for him to have another  
go at it. They were almost grateful that they were still in a war with various netherworld denizens. If they  
hadn't been, Sage probably wouldn't have stopped when he did.  
  
All the three Ronins could really do is pray for Ryo's swift, and unharmed, return. It was the only  
thing that could placate Sage.  
  
  
********************************  
  
Ryo hummed happily to himself under his breath, daydreaming of a certain blond haired warrior. He could  
almost feel the firm muscles, taste deliciously parted lips, and even smell the slightly rose scented  
shampoo his lover used in his hair. It was a good thing he was heading home today, he wasn't sure how  
much longer he could stand the separation. The wildfire warrior was feeling downright, well...you know.  
  
Yes, he couldn't wait to go home. The warlords had finally announced him proficient enough, saying  
almost grudgingly that "he'd do" after he'd come out on top of a six-way sparring match. Fighting wasn't  
the only thing he'd learned, however. It was amazing the advantage the blind could hold over the seeing.  
The unimpaired just didn't "see" it coming.  
  
  
********************************  
  
Sage was sitting alone in his room, as he did every day when he wasn't fighting the netherworld. He wasn't  
sure if he could restrain himself if he was around the other three ronin. He wanted to hurt them too much,  
and the only thing that kept him from going done there right now and beating the crap out of them was the  
possiblity that they'd need to be in fighting shape for another battle.  
  
He wasn't exactly sure what had stopped him the first time he'd been beating them into bloody pulps. He  
was quite sure that there hadn't been a reasonable, sane thought in his body when he'd been going at it.  
But suddenly he was staring down at his blood covered hands and realizing that it belonged to people  
who were supposedly his best friends.  
  
Now he just waited, because somewhere down the line he'd come to the realization that maybe, just  
maybe, they had been right. He'd never admit it of course, not even to himself, but the memory of a Ryo  
gone pale and thin, once sparkling eyes dim and vacant, it never left him.  
  
But it still didn't negate the homicidal feelings coursing through his veins, so he decided that it was best  
he remained isolated until Ryo returned home. Then he would decide if he should start planning the  
funeral arrangements.  
  
*********************************  
  
A cheerful, vigorous, whistling young man with black hair and sparkling sapphires for eyes walked   
confidently up to the large mansion, letting himself in the front door. He strode into the living room  
without a single misstep and stopped in the exact middle of the room, right in front of the blaring TV.  
  
Three other young men stared at him blank-faced and slack-jawed with suprise.  
  
"Hey guys! Where's Sage at?"  
  
They all started to point towards the stairs, but stopped in embarrasent when they remembered he  
couldn't see it.   
  
Finally Rowen managed to stammer out a faint "upstairs" and Ryo bounced along his way, stopping  
just at the foot of the staircase to turn around and give them a quick thanks and a wink before he  
took the steps two at a time with an almost nauseating amount of energy.  
  
*********************************  
  
The three Ronins looked at each other speechlessly once they were alone again. The Ryo that had just   
swept through here like the wildfire of his name was a far cry from the wraith they had abandoned to   
the warlords.  
  
"C-can you guys believe that?" stammered Kento in awe."He just walked in here like he always did. You  
couldn't even tell that he could't see a thing."  
  
"Yeah, I know what ya mean, Kento. It's kinda freaky in a cool sort of way," commented Rowen after  
he managed to recover the remaining shreds of his composure.  
  
Cye looked questioningly at the other two. "Do you think he can fight now?"  
  
Rowen just shook his head. "I know he can. Ryo would never be that cheerful otherwise. I'm more  
interested in his hurry to find Sage."  
  
"Well they haven't seen eachother in over a month, Rowen. What do you expect?" Kento spoke as if he  
were talking to a small child. After all, it was obvious to him, and Rowen was supposed to be some  
kind of genius.  
  
Rowen just gave him a sly grin. "I know what I'D expect, I just wasn't sure that Ryo was that kind of guy."  
  
*********************************  
  
Ryo lost a bit of his bounce as he got closer to Sage's room. It had been such a long time since he'd seen  
Sage. He hoped that he was still welcome.  
  
He knocked softly Sage's door, but to his confusion no answer was forthcoming. Hesitantly he turned the  
knob, not sure of the reaction he would get.  
  
Sage was seated on his bed indian-style with his eyes closed. His golden lashes fluttered slowly as he  
heard the door open, puzzled at the thought of one of the other guys coming into his room univited.   
  
Unless....unless it was the single one of them who'd never needed an invitation.  
  
Hope started to build, a fragile thing that could be dashed into nothingness with just the flick of an eyelid.  
Dare he open his eyes?  
  
A light touch materialized on his cheek. It came very close to being a caress.  
The hope grew stronger, but he still hadn't the courage to look. He felt just as helpless as Ryo had ever  
been.  
  
The caress strengthened and he felt a warm, calloused palm cupping his chin and tilting it forward.   
Only when a feather-light pressure brushed against his lips did he dare let his sight return.  
  
He stared directly into a pair of tiger bright eyes that held a smile deep within them. A smile that was  
meant only for him.  
  
They embraced then, not wasting precious air on words. They understood each other perfectly.  
  
The two lovers paused in their reunion only long enough for the blond haired one to remove a small velvet  
box from a drawer and slip the contents onto their hands.  
  
They had a lot of lost time to make up for.  
  
*****************************************  
  
Downstairs, three young men stared abstractedly at the ceiling.  
  
"Do you think he's still mad at us?"  
  
  
  
  
  
*******************************************************************************************  
  
I'M DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you believe it? So what do you all think? I know I made you all wait an   
incredibly long time and I'm sooooooooooo sorry. I'm pretty happy with the way this turned out. I tried to  
make this more humorous, but I'm not really a humor kind of person, so I hope you all like it.   
  
As much as I enjoy dark fics and torturing my favorite characters, I just couldn't picture this without a   
happy ending.   
  
So..........REVIEW!!, I really do want to know what you think. At least let me know if my blase attempts  
at comedy turned out all right. 


End file.
